Skip to content Skip to Search
Skip navigation

QatarEnergy to explore oil off Suriname coast

By Pramod Kumar
PIF Zamil Offshore exploration Reuters/Amir Cohen
PIF’s investment will strengthen the capital base of Zamil Offshore to enable it to continue expanding its services

QatarEnergy has signed a 30-year production-sharing contract with Suriname’s state-owned oil company Staatsolie for a block off the coast of the South American country.

The Qatari state-owned company has signed a similar deal with France’s TotalEnergies for a second offshore block, according to a Staatsolie statement.

The two blocks (No 6 and No 8) are in the west of the shallow offshore area of Suriname, which is on the northeastern coast of South America.

Staatsolie will have 40 percent participation through its subsidiary Paradise Oil Company.

QatarEnergy and TotalEnergies will bear the costs in the exploration phase, which is expected to last six years. The first well is scheduled to be drilled in the third or fourth year, the statement added.

After completing a shallow water bidding round in 2021, Staatsolie has been negotiating and signing production-sharing contracts with the auction winners.

Contracts have already been signed with Chevron for two blocks and with Shell for one block, which are under exploration.

In April, QatarEnergy agreed with British company Shell to acquire a 40 percent working interest in the C-10 block located off the coast of Mauritania.

As part of its expansion strategy, the Qatari oil firm has acquired exploration licences in several countries, including South Africa, Namibia and Cyprus.

Latest articles

Sainsbury's has the second-largest share of the UK grocery market, at 15 percent, behind Tesco at 28 percent

Qatar to reduce stake in UK supermarket Sainsbury’s

Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund is selling part of its 15 percent stake in the British supermarket Sainsbury’s as the fund pushes ahead with expansion in the United States and Asia, particularly China and India. Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), the biggest shareholder in Sainsbury’s, is selling £306 million ($399 million) worth of shares in the retailer, […]

Shoppers in Kuwait's Avenues Mall – the IMF says the country needs to encourage private sector employment

Kuwait needs to push reforms for economic growth, says IMF

Kuwait must accelerate the introduction of fiscal and structural reforms that are needed to increase private sector-led growth and diversify its economy away from hydrocarbons, the International Monetary Fund said on Friday. Kuwait’s economy will contract by 3.2 percent this year because of an Opec+ oil production cut, but will grow by 2.8 percent in 2025 […]

Thani Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade of the United Arab Emirates, (UAE) speaks during the Skybridge Capital SALT New York 2021 conference in New York City, U.S., September 15, 2021. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, the UAE’s minister of state for foreign trade, said 'Malaysia offers substantial opportunity for our exporters, industrialists and business leaders' UAE Malaysia Cepa

UAE and Malaysia sign Cepa to increase bilateral trade

The UAE and Malaysia have signed a free trade deal, bringing the number of deals the Gulf state has agreed with foreign governments to 12. The comprehensive economic partnership agreement (Cepa) will seek to eliminate or reduce tariffs, lower trade barriers, increase private sector collaboration and create new investment opportunities, the two countries said in a […]

Modern buildings in the city center of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Riyadh leads Saudi Arabia’s hot property market

Strong population and employment growth in Riyadh is driving a surge in real estate transactions as new properties cannot come on the market fast enough. A dramatic rise in the number of deals in the 12 months to the end of June was also visible in Jeddah and Dammam, according to a report this week […]